Charade
by coveredinbees14
Summary: Written for Newsies Pape Selling Competition and involves the musical Pulitzer meeting the movie Pulitzer.


Author's Note: This was written for Circulation Two of the Newsies Pape Selling Competition (the community can be found under Forums:Plays:Newsies if you are interested in joining!). My prompt was that my newsies met in college. I did not use any prompts. My pairing is Pulitzer/Pulitzer. I'll admit I have not yet seen the musical - I have tickets to see it the first week of June so I didn't want to 'spoil' myself by watching any videos of it - so I apologize if my Pulitzer is totally off. As always, reviews are welcome and appreciated. Word Count (minus summary and A.N.) is 1119. Thank you!

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Joseph Pulitzer was not a patient man or a kind man. The majority of the people he had working for him knew that about him. So he was a little surprised to find an invitation to give a speech at Columbia University that summer. He felt that it was clearly an attempt by his rivals to humiliate him as word had quickly spread around the city that he, the creator of the _World_ , had been taken down by a handful of ragamuffin newsies.

As Pulitizer struggled to review the speech prepared for him he heard what sounded like someone singing coming from down the hall. And it was getting on his last nerve.

"Seitz!" Pulitzer bellowed. A thin, worried looking man stood and looked expectantly at Pulitzer. "How can one be expected to read this speech with all that noise going on?"

"I'm sorry, sir. I'll see what I can do," Seitz answered nervously.

A few moments passed and Pultizer was pleased to hear the singing cut off abruptly. However, he was less pleased when the door opened and Seitz appeared again.

"Terribly sorry, sir. But there seems to be some kind of…well, some kind of…"Seitz stuttered.

"Some kind of what? Spit it out, Seitz."

"I'm afraid I don't know quite how to explain it, sir. It appears the University, perhaps as a backup plan in case you were unable to make it, has hired a replacement."

"A replacement?" Pultizer shouted irritably.

"Yes, sir. It's the strangest thing, sir. He claims that _he_ is Joseph Pulitzer, sir."

"Preposterous!" Pulitzer threw the printed speech down in frustration and stormed toward the door. Just as he reached the hallway he stopped in his tracks, stunned to see a man looking similar to himself step out of another door. The other man appeared slightly older as his hair and beard were both graying in color but other than that the two men were identical.

"Explain yourself," Pulitzer demanded as the other man eyed him suspiciously.

"I suggest _you_ explain _yourself_ first," the stranger demanded.

"I'm Joseph Pulitzer," both men stated at the same time. Without missing a beat they each added, "Now just what is going on here?"

"I'll go and see if I can find someone, sir," Seitz said as he looked from one Pulitzer to the other. "Perhaps they can explain this mix-up."

"There's been no mix-up," the stranger huffed. "I have been invited here as a distinguished member of the community. As for this imposter, I'm sure you can see your way out."

Pulitzer felt his blood pressure rise as he heard himself so easily tossed aside by this oddity claiming to be Joseph Pulitzer.

"I'll assume this is some kind of trick set up by Hearst. Always one to hold a grudge," Pulitzer mentioned. "I should have never agreed to lower the price back to fifty cents per one hundred papers for those ungrateful newsies. The whole newspaper community is against me now."

"Lowered the price? I should say not. I, Joseph Pulitzer, agreed to buy back unsold papers in return for the end of that terrible strike. Clearly, you are nothing more than an errand boy sent to fool these simpletons into believing you are Joseph Pulitzer."

"I certainly did not agree to buy back unsold papers," Pulitzer shouted, ignoring Seitz. "Now you shut up and listen, you vagabond. I am the one and only Joseph Pulitzer and if you continue this charade I shall have you arrested. Believe me, I have the authority to see you put in jail."

"And I have the authority to see _you_ put in jail, sir," the stranger replied with just as much scorn. He paused for a moment and his face lightened briefly. "I understand what this is. This is some kind of joke being played on me by Katherine and that horrid newsie she claims to love."

"Who the hell is Katherine?" Pulitzer asked rudely.

The strange man blinked at him. "Why Katherine is my daughter, of course. See? I knew you were an imposter."

"For the last time, I am not am imposter! I have no daughter and I certainly will not abide by the insinuation that I would ever allow _my_ daughter to saunter around with one of those dirty newsies."

"The daughter you just claimed you do not have?"

Pulitzer gritted his teeth and pulled at his hair until it stood straight up in the air. "I do not have a daughter! And frankly, I've had enough of this charade."

"Papa! I heard shouting, what is going on here?" A young finely dressed woman stepped from the same door the second Pulitzer had emerged from earlier. She approached the two Pulitzers and a look of astonishment crossed her face briefly.

"Katherine, please return to the room while I deal with this charlatan," the stranger answered as he tried to steer the girl back down the hallway.

"Katherine!" Pulitzer said in shock. His head was beginning to ache severely as he tried to match what he knew with what he was seeing before his very eyes.

"Yes, as I stated earlier I have a daughter, Katherine. I suspect the police will be arriving momentarily so I suggest you give up your attempt to pass yourself off as me," the stranger explained as he took his daughter by the arm and lead her away.

"Just a moment!" Pulitzer began as he smoothed his hair and straightened his tie. He followed quickly behind the stranger and the young girl but found the door shut in his face just as he reached the two.

Pulitzer knocked loudly on the door but there was no answer. He tried the knob and finding it unlocked he jerked the door open to find an empty room in front of him. He marched across the empty floor and scanned the surroundings but there was clearly no one else there. There was no window in the room and the only door was the one he had just come through.

"Sir? I've found the Dean but I'm afraid he cannot explain the situation," Seitz explained as he stood in the open doorway and stared nervously at Pulitzer.

"W-What is it Seitz?" Pulitzer asked as his mind was overcome with confusion.

"The Dean, sir. You wanted me to find him," Seitz reminded Pulitzer. He looked around the empty room. "About the other man?"

"I have no idea what you are talking about, Seitz. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a speech to prepare," Pulitzer interrupted and stormed past the confused looking Seitz. He returned to his own room where he slumped into a chair and poured himself a drink, overcome by the events of the day.


End file.
